Chandigarh, February 10 The ruling Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) in Punjab questioned the presence of Shiromani Akali Dal chief Sukhbir Singh Badal and state BJP working president Ashwani Sharma at Governor Gulab Chand Kataria's anti-drug 'padyatra' in Ferozepur on Tuesday. It alleged that Kataria was walking alongside "those very people who are themselves responsible for the spread of drugs in the state."
AAP also said that the governor initiated the "so-called" anti-drug 'padyatra' after being "influenced" by the success of the Punjab government's fight against the drug menace.
Kataria commenced a four-day anti-drug 'padyatra' from Tarn Taran on Sunday, marking the launch of the second phase of the anti-drug awareness campaign in the border districts of the state.
AAP Punjab chief spokesperson and MLA Kuldeep Singh Dhaliwal asserted that while the state government has been consistently leading the fight against drugs across the state, the governor's parallel yatra sends a "deeply troubling" message about who he is choosing to stand with.
"Under the guidance of Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann and AAP national convenor Arvind Kejriwal, the AAP government has been continuously carrying out anti-drug yatras across Punjab. These yatras are not symbolic; they are part of a sustained, on-the-ground battle against drugs," he said.
However, rattled by the success of our government's efforts, the governor has now started his own separate yatra, and both the method adopted and the people involved in it raise several serious questions," he said.
Asserting that AAP does not oppose any genuine effort against drugs, Dhaliwal said, "We want every individual, every organisation and every institution to become part of the fight against drugs. But it is deeply condemnable that the governor is walking alongside those very people who are themselves responsible for spreading drugs in Punjab."
Taking strong exception to the composition of the yatra, Dhaliwal said, "A yatra in which Shiromani Akali Dal president Sukhbir Singh Badal and BJP leader Ashwani Sharma are seated cannot be aimed at eradicating drugs. Such a spectacle does not inspire confidence; instead, it appears to be an exercise that shields criminals rather than confronting them."
